In a message dated 97-01-08 12:44:51 EST, Adrian Wenner writes: > The sudden colony collapse without beekeepers being aware of an >infestation now becomes more understandable. My impression is that a >colony can harbor ever higher loads of varroa infestation and then suddenly >reaches a breaking point. In this case, they could no longer keep their >broo Thank you, Adrian, for sharing this with us. I've been a beekeeper for l6 years, observing and reading, and trying hard to understanding what was going on in my apiary. Reading the above, brief paragraph was like having a veil lifted from before my eyes. Suddenly, so much of what I have been seeing the past two or three years made sense. All the reading of this bee-line is worth it to find such a kernel amongst the chaff. Some thoughts are percolating right now; could you give me your two cents on them. I do my usual spring balancing of hives by swapping frames of brood from heavy hives to lighter ones. Last year, after such manipulations, I noticed that one hive had challkbrood. My heart sunk. Had I moved some frames from it to another colony? I could not remember. But, reflecting now, might such actions not only have spread chalkbrood but varroa as well. Then again, if both are in one hive might such conditions spread to the others even without frame exchanges? Thank you, Adrian (and any others) for the input. Meanwhile, keep up the good work. This past posting was fascinating. No wonder island nations (Hawaii,etc.) want to keep out other bees! Faith Andrews Bedford Ivy, VA and Tampa